9 Cool Facts About the Monopoly Dog (2022 Guide)

Let’s play Monopoly! What game piece do you want?

If you’re like many players, you prefer the pooch. The Monopoly dog has been a beloved piece ever since its introduction. Who doesn’t want to take the little pup for a walk along Park Place?

The Monopoly dog isn’t just a terrific token. It also has a fun and fascinating history as part of the Monopoly game. Check out these cool facts about the Monopoly dog.

• Early editions of Monopoly games included no game tokens, but players were instructed to use household items as tokens.
• In 1935, Parker Brothers started including metal game tokens in Monopoly. Our friend, the dog, wasn’t added until 1950.
• In the 00’s celebrities carried dogs around in purses. In 2006 a Segway, Flat Screen TV, Altoids Container and a Dog in a Handbag were added to the Monopoly Electronic Banking Edition.
• If you regularly play with dog fans, the Dog Lovers Edition contains houses and hotels for doghouses and pet carriers, and new money featuring pictures of dogs.
• The Scottish Terrier is a dog that exists in both the gold and silver editions of the game.
• Scottish Terriers are medium-sized, energetic dogs that are popular family pets. Most toy historians think the breed choice is related to FDR’s dog, Fala, who was incredibly popular.

The Dog is a Late Addition to the Game

Early editions of Monopoly games included the board, money, properties, and dice. That’s right – no game tokens! Instead, players were instructed to use household items. They used all sorts of things such as buttons, coins, and even thimbles. (Not including tokens was a fairly common practice used by many board games of the time.)

In 1935, Parker Brothers started including metal game tokens. The original six Monopoly token  pieces were:

• Thimble
• Ship
• Shoe
• Hat
• Cannon
• Iron

The thimble was likely included due to the popularity of its real counterpart as a playing piece.

Our friend, the dog, wasn’t added until the 1950s. Other Monopoly tokens added around the same time were the Horse with Rider, Car, Airplane, and Wheelbarrow.

Paris Hilton Inspired a Dog Token

Do you remember in the 00’s when celebrities, such as Paris, carried tiny dogs around in purses? While it’s maybe not the best way to transport a dog, it was definitely a sign of the times, which is why the trend found its way onto the Monopoly game board.

The Electronic Banking Editions and Here and Now Editions update the game with topical references, new pieces, other real estate, and a digital money counter. In the 2006 Monopoly Electronic Banking Edition, the tokens include a Segway, Flat Screen TV, Altoids Container, and a Dog in a Handbag.

It’s not the only set with a new dog piece. In 2013, the Monopoly Electronic Banking Edition included a colorful green, robot dog token.

More Than One Player Can Be the Dog

When setting up a game of Monopoly, does everyone in your household reach for the dog token? As one of the most popular tokens, it’s understandable that the dog is often hotly contested.

If you regularly play with dog fans, check out the Dog Lovers Edition. It’s a Theme Pack that you mix into the standard Monopoly game. The pack switches houses and hotels for doghouses and pet carriers. It also includes new money featuring pictures of dogs.

The best part is the new tokens, which include several different breeds of dogs. You get Labrador, Dachshund, Beagle, German Shepherd, Labradoodles, and Scottish Terrier tokens.

The Scottish Terrier isn’t necessarily an existing match to the dog from the original game. There are two versions of the Dog Lovers Edition: gold tokens and traditional silver pieces. (The boxes have clear packaging, so when you search online, you want to see a photo of the specific Pack you’re ordering.)

The Dog is a Scottish Terrier

Nicknamed “the Diehard” for their persistence, Scottish Terriers are medium-sized, energetic dogs. They’re popular family pets known for their friendliness and loyalty. 

Of all the dog breeds to choose from, why a Scottish Terrier? Nobody knows for sure, but most toy historians think the breed choice is related to President Franklin Roosevelt. Throughout most of the 40s, FDR had a Scottish Terrier named Fala, who was a near-constant companion.

Fala was incredibly popular. He had a secretary to handle his fan mail from dog lovers, and two movies were made about him. It’s reasonable to assume any Scottish Terrier dogs who appeared in pop culture throughout the 40s and 50s were likely inspired by Fala.

It Won a Popularity Contest

In 2013, Hasbro held the “Save Your Token” campaign. People around the world voted on which Monopoly pieces should stay and which should retire.

The big winner? You guessed it. The dog garnered the most votes. It received 29% of the vote, with votes coming in from 185 different countries.

Unfortunately, not every piece was so well-liked. The Iron was the big loser and was subsequently removed from the game by Hasbro.

In its place, Hasbro introduced the Cat, a sleek, short-haired feline with the letter “M” on his collar. The Cat won the most votes in a separate poll for a new token, receiving 31% of the votes and beating out a Diamond Ring, Guitar, Helicopter, and Toy Robot.

It’s the First Animal

Scottie was the first token based on an animal. Other Monopoly game pieces inspired by animals include the following:

• Horse and Rider – Popular in the 1950s, the Horse and Rider was retired without any public announcement from the manufacturer.
• Cat – As mentioned above, the Cat was the landslide winner in a new character poll.
• T-Rex – In 2017, Hasbro held another vote for a new character, with the T-Rex garnering more votes than any other piece in the history of the Hasbro polls. You can find the T-Rex in the standard, modern version of Monopoly.
• Penguin – The Penguin was another winning piece from the 2017 contest.

As you probably noticed, animals are incredibly popular Monopoly tokens among fans, consistently winning vote after vote.

It’s Been in the Game Longer than Most Other Tokens

Monopoly tokens have come and gone frequently over the years. Of the six original pieces, only the Top Hat remains in the current edition of the game. The Shoe and Thimble were retired in 2017, and the Cat replaced the Iron in 2013.

The Scottie and the Race Car are the only two pieces released before 2017 that are still in the game today. The Race Car debuted in 1935 and never left, and the Scottie has been in the game consistently since the 40s.

Today, when you purchase Monopoly, it includes the following eight pieces:

• Top Hat
• Battleship
• Race Car
• Scottie Dog
• Cat                                           
• T-Rex
• Penguin
• Rubber Ducky

Many themed editions exist with various licensed characters. For example, the Mario edition includes tokens featuring Mario characters in Karts. The popular Monopoly Empire edition has many famous brand tokens included, such as a Microsoft Xbox controller and a Caterpillar Digger.

It’s Officially Considered a Classic Token

The Monopoly 80th Anniversary Edition is popular among game aficionados. It includes a mix of classic Monopoly pieces, each with distinctive elements that represent each decade:

• The 1930s – Lantern token
• The 1940s – Bathtub
• The 1950s – Cannon
• The 1960s – Horse and Rider
• The 1970s – Racecar on Pillar (It’s different from the traditional Racecar piece)
• The 1980s – Train
• The 1990s – Money Sack
• The 2000s – Cat

It’s hard to believe that the 80th Anniversary Edition doesn’t include any dogs, but it’s still an impressive collection of classic pieces.

In 2017, Hasbro released the Token Madness edition of the game. It includes 16 Monopoly pieces split into Classics and Modern.

The Modern section had the Penguin, CRT TV, an updated Racecar, Rubber Ducky, Wristwatch, Bunny Slippers, Wheel, and Rich Uncle Moneybags himself.

So, what tokens does Hasbro classify as Classics? They included the Shoe, Top Hat, Wheelbarrow, Battleship, Cat, Racecar, Thimble, and, of course, the Scottie Dog. 

Final Thoughts

Monopoly is often considered one of the greatest family games of all time, available in countless different versions and variations.

The dog playing piece is a true classic and arguably the most popular Monopoly token ever created. Crafted with loads of tiny details and a distinctive design, this pup is ready to run around the game board and help you win!

• Scottie was the first Monopoly token based on an animal. Other popular Monopoly tokens include the Horse and Rider, Cat, T-Rex, Penguin, and more.
• In official game materials, the token is typically referred to as Scottie Dog, but many Monopoly fans refer to Scottie as simply “Scottie.”
• Monopoly tokens have changed over the years, but today, Monopoly includes the following eight pieces: the Top Hat, Battleship, Race Car, Scottie Dog, Cat T-Rex, Penguin, and Rubber Ducky.
• The Monopoly 80th Anniversary Edition includes a variety of classic Monopoly pieces, including the Lantern token, Bathtub, Cannon, Horse, Rider, Racecar, Train, Money Sack, and Cat.
• In 2017, Hasbro released the Token Madness edition of Monopoly, which included the Penguin, CRT TV, Rubber Ducky, Wristwatch, Bunny Slippers, Wheel, and Rich Uncle Moneybags himself.